Written Questions

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his department is taking to tackle youth unemployment in Leicester East, in the context of Office for National Statistics data for July 2026 showing 645 claimants aged 18 to 24 and zero net c

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department plans to allocate additional work coaches or specialised advisory staff to Jobcentre Plus locations serving Leicester East to address the higher than average local claimant rate.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how the 4.7% claimant rate in Leicester East compares with average claimant rates across the wider East Midlands region; and what specific regional economic strategy is being implemented to bring Leices

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of access to finance, innovation support, and business expansion in Leicester East.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, what steps his Department is taking to improve the growth and productivity of small and medium-sized enterprises in Leicester East.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate her department has made of the number of non-compliant disposable vape units seized by trading standards officers in Leicester over the past 12 months.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of social media accounts promoting illegal driving and joyriding on road safety in Leicester East.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department is taking steps with the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport to mandate that social media platforms remove content depicting dangerous and illegal driving, including

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress her Department has made in reducing the number of young drivers aged 17 to 24 who use mobile devices to record content or access social media while driving.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment her Department has made of the potential implications for its policies of recent research by IAM RoadSmart indicating that 14 per cent of drivers aged 17 to 24 record videos or take photos while

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department is running targeted public awareness campaigns to deter drivers aged 17 to 24 from accessing social media behind the wheel.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions she has had with the police regarding targeted enforcement operations against viral online road crime groups.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what guidance is provided to police forces on using social media evidence posted on platforms such as TikTok to prosecute individuals participating in organised joyriding.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the Government plans to increase maximum penalties for individuals who record and publish illegal driving activities online to gain social media followers.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the potential implications for its policies of the level of qualified Religious Education teachers who hold a relevant post-A-level qualification.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to address the gap in Religious Education specialist hours delivered at Key Stage 3 compared to Key Stages 4 and 5.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate her Department has made of the proportion of Religious Education timetable hours delivered by non-specialist staff in secondary schools in Leicester East.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of removing postgraduate training bursaries for Religious Education in 2026/27 on meeting the target set out in the 2026 Schools White Paper of an expert tea

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, for what reasons Subject Knowledge Enhancement courses are currently limited to computing, languages, mathematics and physics.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to prevent secondary schools from using Religious Education lessons primarily to fill non-specialist teacher timetable capacity.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what comparative assessment she has made of the proportion of unqualified teaching hours in Religious Education at Key Stage 4 relative to History and Geography.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to support the number of Religious Education teachers.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of increased National Insurance costs, higher minimum wages and employment costs on entry-level and graduate recruitment.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of artificial intelligence adoption on the number of entry-level and graduate vacancies.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions she has had with universities and graduate employers on the number of graduate job listings; and what guidance her Department has issued to recent graduates.